The invention relates to circuit breakers and, more particularly, to an improved method of manufacturing a circuit breaker.
Circuit breakers function to interrupt electrical current flow between a source of electricity and a load in response to an over-current condition. They are typically manufactured in standard sized housings and include a movable blade carrying a contact (movable contact) that is generally connected to the electrical source, a mechanism carrying a stationary contact and a spring for biasing the movable contact away from the stationary contact. A releasable latch mechanism opposes the spring bias to physically couple the movable contact and the stationary contact to permit current flow from the source to the load. A trip lever releases the latch mechanism, permitting the spring bias to separate the movable contact and the stationary contact to prevent current flow from the source to the load.
Prior art circuit breaker assemblies have one or more points of attachment to the housing. This makes preassembly of the breaker mechanism difficult because it is held together by the housing. The manufacture of prior art circuit breakers has also been difficult to automate because parts need to be assembled along three orthogonally related axes. The present invention provides a solution to these problems.